Will Beatty will make his second NFL start at left tackle today, as David Diehl (hamstring) and Shawn Andrews (back) remain out of commission for the Giants.

In Beatty’s debut at left tackle last week, he showed the potential the team envisioned when in 2009 they made him a second-round draft pick out of UConn.

“The whole thing was to be a left tackle, and so If I’m not at left tackle then I’m not going to the original plan,” Beatty said. “To me, am I doing what I need to be doing, or are they just using me somewhere else? Playing left tackle is giving me a confidence that I’m going for a spot. I have to know all the positions, but you have to be the master at this spot.”

The challenge today against the Redskins will come from former first-round pick Brian Orakpo, the second-year outside linebacker who leads the ‘Skins with 8½ sacks. The Redskins play a 3-4 defensive front, adding to the test for Beatty.

“A challenge helps me,” Beatty said. “Because the better they are and the more chances I get to go against a really good guy, [it] is really good to show the coaches and I know what I’m doing and I can compete against some of the better guys.”

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Defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth
, he of the seven-year, $100 million contract ($41 million guaranteed), is not a starter for the Redskins and will not be sharing any holiday eggnog with head coach Mike Shanahan
, but that does not mean he doesn’t have to be accounted for. The 335-pound behemoth — who missed practice time this week with an illness and is listed as questionable — has only 22 tackles and 2½ sacks this season, but on the plays he’s motivated he can do some damage.

“When he is in he is disruptive,” left guard Kevin Boothe
said. “I just know when he’s in he’s making plays, there’s no doubt about that. You watch him come in — he’s making sacks, he’s basically totally destroying protections even if he doesn’t get the sack. He’s definitely someone playing at a high level when he’s in.”

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Wide receiver Devin Thomas
, signed last week, looks as if he will make his Giants debut against the Redskins, the team that drafted him with the 34th overall selection out of Michigan State in 2008.

“I definitely have a little insight, so I give little tidbits here and there, help the guys out a little bit just to know what to expect a little bit more,” said Thomas, who figures to fit in on special teams.

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The most dangerous weapon the Redskins have just might be Brandon Banks
, a pint-sized (5-foot-7, 155-pound) rookie who averages 27 yards per kickoff return — good for fifth in the league — and 11.3 yards on punt returns. One of the key players assigned to deal with Banks in coverage is Michael Coe
, a cornerback signed off the practice squad last week.

“Excellent returner, excellent change of direction, excellent speed — that’s what you fear most about returners, that change of direction,” Coe said.